Combined mail box, bell, number and name plate



R. E. VOEPEL Sept., i936.,

COMBINED MAIL BOX, BELL, NUMBER, AND NAME PLATE u 2 sheets-sheet 1 Filed June 4, 1934 A.. l uw Sept 8 w35 R. EfvoEPEL v 'f 2,053,58

COMBINED MAIL BOX, BELL, NUMBER, AND NAME PLATE Filed June 4,k 1934 2l Smets-sheet Patented Sept. 8, 1936 UNITED STATES COMBINED MAIL BOX, BELL; NUMBER AND NAME PLATE Ralph E. Voepel, St. Louis County, M0. Application June 4, 1934, serial No. 729,003

1 Claim.

This invention relates to letter or mail boxes for dwellings, and has for the primary object the provision of a device which will permit mail to be easily and quickly placed in or removed therefrom and also provides a mounting for a doorbell switch, house number and the name of the person residing in the dwelling or house and which may be efliciently illuminated so that from a distance and at night time the number of the dwelling and name of the occupant may be easily determined as well as permitting a caller at the dwelling to readily locate the doorbell switch or push-button.

With these and other objects in view this invention consists in certain novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts to be hereinafter more fully described and claimed.

For a complete understanding of my invention, reference is to be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a front elevation illustrating a mail box constructed in accordance with my invention.

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional view illustrating a light compartment of the mail box and the means of supporting the illuminating lamp therev in and taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the mail compartment of the letter box.

Figure 6 is a plan view illustrating the follower and its connection to the cover of the mail box.

Figure '7 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the mounting of the name plate and character plate for the bell switch to the front wall of the mail box.

Figure 8 is a perspective view illustrating the character plate or panel for the switch.y

Figure 9 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating one of the number stenciled plates.

Referring in detail to the drawings, the numeral I indicates a casing adapted to be arranged vertically upon a support and includes a removable rear wall 2, projecting above and below the ends of the casing to form attaching portions or lips 3 apertured to receive fasteners to connect the casing to a sup-port. The upper end of the casing is opened and closed by a hinged cover 4 and the latter is provided with a slot 5 to permit the insertion of letters or mail into the casing when the cover is in a closed position. The cover 4 is also provided with an opening 6 to receive a spring catch 'I carried by the casing and the latter is apertured, as shown at 8, so that a shackle of a lock may be passed therethrough for securing the cover in a closed position.

The casing I is divided into mail and light s compartments 9 and I0 by a heat resisting par- 5 tition II. The partition isk mounted in grooves formed in opposite walls-of theV casing, as shown at I2. The bottom wall of the casing is provided with vent openings I3 to admit air to the light compartment I0 and the latter is illuminated by l0 an electric lamp I4 carried by a socket I 5 mounted in a spring clamp I6. The spring clamp has a shank I'I integral therewith and engages one face of the partition. The upper portion of the shank is bent to form a hook I8 that passes over l5 the upper edge oi' the partition and grips the opposite face of the partition from that engaged by the shank Il. Thus the electric lamp is removably secured to the partition and will permit of the electric lamp being removed from the 20 compartment when necessary. The conductors I9 of the electric lamp socket extend downwardly in the light chamber and pass outwardly of the casing by way of a tube 20. The conductors I9 form part of an electric circuit (not shown) and 25 also arranged within the electric circuit is a doorbell controlled by a switch 2| of the push-button type. The push-button is mounted to the front wall of the casing and which will be hereinafter more fully described. 30

A follower plate 22 is slidably mounted in the mail compartment and is connected to the cover 4 by rods 23, the latter having their upper ends pivoted to the cover and their lower ends angularly related to underlie the follower plate. The cov- 35 er 4 when swung to an open position will cause an upward movement of the follower plate and any letters or mail in the mail compartment will be partially elevated out of the casing so that they can be easily grasped by a person. 40

The rear wall 2 of the casing has formed upon its inner face an enlargement 24 provided with oppositely inclined faces 25. The purpose of the enlargement 24 and the inclined faces 25 is to cause the letters or mail to assume an inclined 45 position, as shown in Figure 2, the upper ends of the letters resting against partition and the lower ends upon the follower plate 22 and in engagement with the rear wall 2.

The upper portion of the front wall of the cas- 50 ing is provided with a comparatively large opening closed by a semi-transparent panel 25 and arranged between the panel and the front wall of the casing are number bearing plates 2l. The plates 3l are preferably of a stencil type so that 55 the light rays from the electric lamp passing through the panel 26 will illuminate the numbers. These numbers represent the number of the dwelling. The stencil or number plate may be constructed of any material suitable for the purpose and the upper edge of each plate is oiset t form a ange 28 overlain by the lower edge of the adjacent plate and the ange 28 has struck therefrom tongues 23 cooperating with the ilange 28 in retaining the plate in slightly overlapped relation and against Separation.

The fro-nt wall of the casing below the numbers is provided with an elongated opening 35i and surrounding the opening is a removable frame 3|. Clamp-ed between the frame and the front wail and spanning the opening 3D is a name plate 32 preferably of the stencil type and bears the name of the occupant of the dwelling.

The front wall below the opening 3Q is formed with a substantially U-shaped opening 33 dening a tongue 3Q integral with the front Wall and this tongue is apertured and has mounted therein the push-button or switch 2|. Closing the opening 33 is a semi-transparent panel 35 bearing characters spelling the word Bell so that a caller at the dwelling will have attention directed to the pushbutton or switch and obviate the caller experiencing diiiiculty in locating the switch or button at night time.

The tube 20 is preferably constructed of an insulating material obviating the possibility of the conductors becoming short circuited and arranged in the circuit of the electric lamp is a switch 36 mounted to the botom wall of the casing wherev by the circuit for the electric lamp can be opened and closed when desired.

Having described the invention, I claim:

A character display device comprising a casing supporting characters to be illuminated from the inside of said casing, a vertical partition arranged in said casing to form an article compartment and an illumination compartment positioned next to the characters, said partition having its upper edge below the top of the casing to permit rays of light being directed into the article compartment, and said partition having a notch in its upper edge adjacent one corner thereof, and a hanger in the illumination compartment and including a shank having angularly disposed portions engaging with the partition with one portion terminating substantially centrally of the partition and formed to provide a clamp for receiving an illuminating means and the other portion being bent to form a hook lying in the notch and gripping opposite faces of said partition.

RALPH E. VOEPEL. 

